Randy Johnson hasn’t been a $57 million bust or gone from “Big Unit” to “Big Salad”.

Yet, the season is 25 percent finished and the Yankees are waiting for Johnson to string together a necklace of his signature gems.

It’s apparent the Yankees need Johnson to be more than the pitcher he has been so far, because the Yankees will go as far as their starting arms carry them.

“Have I been successful up to this point?” asked Johnson, who is 4-3 with a 3.94 ERA in nine starts. “No. Not by my standards.”

Is Johnson bothered by his first nine impressions?

“You have never seen me pitch for a whole year. You have seen my numbers, seen what I have done or heard what I have done,” the 41-year-old Hall of Fame lock said. “I am not doing that now. That gnaws at me a little bit.”

It’s clear the Yankees are going to be inconsistent at the plate until an outfielder (Pat Burrell?) with a bat is acquired before the July 31 trading deadline.

And the outfield may not be the first area addressed. While Joe Torre’s bullpen has been very good lately, age is a major concern. That’s why you are going to hear about Billy Wagner and Danys Baez.

Sure, Roger Clemens coming to The Bronx is a delicious thought. But as the Yankees open a three-game series against the Tigers tonight at Yankee Stadium and the Red Sox visiting for the weekend, their rotation is the reason they have run off 12 wins in 14 games and gotten back into the AL East race.

They trail the first-place Orioles by 4 ½ games and the second-place Red Sox by 2 1/2.

In those 14 games, the starters are 12-1 with a 2.99 ERA. The lone loser was Johnson, who was beaten by the Mets, 7-1, Saturday.

The names are certainly impressive. But the biggest name is Johnson, and it’s time for him to dominate hitters with high-octane heaters and filthy sliders. He and the Yankees say the left groin problem is history.

His next chance comes Friday night against the Red Sox. After that, Torre said Johnson will pitch on his normal four days rest and Chien-Ming Wang will be skipped.

Four days. Five days. Ten days. It’s time for Johnson to carry the Yankees.

When he arrived in pinstripes, Johnson said he was “one of five.” He was right. A 4-3 ledger that goes with a 3.94 ERA (almost a run higher than his career mark) has blended him into the staff. But that’s not what George Steinbrenner is paying for.

Johnson’s biggest sin so far is that he hasn’t been Johnson. But Saturday’s effort (four runs, 12 hits in 6 2/3 innings) gave the Yankees a chance. He has given up five earned runs in only two of his nine starts. From Wang that would be wonderful. From Kevin Brown, the Yankees would kiss his cleats. From Johnson? It’s not enough. Even at 41, because he says age is irrelevant.

“Granted, I gave up a lot of hits. But if you give up 20 hits in six innings and only two runs, your team is still in the ballgame,” Johnson said. “Now, are you used to seeing that? No. Did you come to the ballgame expecting me to give up 10 hits in six innings? No. Absolutely not. You are basing everything off what past history dictates. Nevertheless, I kept us in the ballgame and that’s my main objective.”

From Wang and Brown, yes. Right or wrong, from Johnson the bar is much higher.

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‘Have I been successful up to this point? No. Not by my standards.’ – Randy Johnson

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Special victim: Unit

Yankees ace Randy Johnson (left) hasn’t performed at level team expected when Bombers traded for him in offseason. Here’s a look at his numbers since moving to Bronx: